Charles D. (Doug) McKenna, Ph.D.
Lt Col, USA, Ret, Dean Emeritus, Marine Corps Command and Staff College
Dr. Doug McKenna has spent over 50 years in public service, first as a serving officer in the United States Army, then as a Professor and Dean of Academics at the Marine Corps Command and Staff College.
While on active duty, Dr. McKenna served for 24 years in a variety of command and staff assignments, including duty in Alaska, Panama and Europe. He fought as a company commander in the 1st Cavalry Division in Vietnam and Cambodia. Dr. McKenna spent almost a decade as a military educator at both the graduate and undergraduate levels, serving twice in the History Department at West Point, where he helped design and teach in the cooperative degree program that enabled incoming Tactical Officers to acquire a Master’s Degree in Leader Development, and in the Combat Studies Institute at the Army’s Command and General Staff College (CGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, where he directed all military history instruction at CGSC.
Upon his retirement from active duty, Dr. McKenna joined Marine Corps University (MCU) in 1992 as the Associate Dean of the Marine Corps Command and Staff College (CSC). In this capacity he was instrumental in facilitating various initiatives to improve curriculum, create an electives program, and acquire degree-granting authority for the college’s Master’s Degree in Military Studies. Promoted in 1998 to become the first civilian Dean of Academics at CSC, Dr. McKenna led efforts to establish the position of Vice-President for Academic Affairs for MCU. The first to serve in that position, he led the successful effort to acquire regional accreditation for MCU from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. As Dean of CSC he also led the College through multiple successful accreditations for Joint Professional Military Education from the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Having served at CSC for 26 years, 20 of which as the Dean of the College, he retired from CSC in July 2018.
A graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, Dr. McKenna holds a doctorate in military history from Duke University.